Frenzied

by Chilton, Claire

  “Okay, turn it off. Ben, can you hear me? It worked. Go back to human!”

  His powerful muscles tensed as he charged at her.

  Oh shit!

  She sidestepped and tried to run away, but tripped backwards onto the floor, landing on her backside.

  He faced her, pure animal.

  “Ben, stop!” she cried, but he kept coming. She rolled over onto all fours and scrambled down the aisle.

  A huge paw grabbed her ankle and dragged her backwards.

  No, no, no!

  She kicked back, which only seemed to enrage him more. He roared, quickly yanking her back towards him and causing the carpet to graze her skin.

  She rolled over onto her back. She couldn’t get angry. She didn’t want to hurt him. Her vision blurred with tears. It hadn’t worked. He wasn’t coming back.

  “Please, Ben. Let it go. Don’t let it control you.”

  He hovered over her, pinning her down with his heavy body. His sharp claws dug into her shoulders, his face close enough to bite hers with his massive fangs.

  She trembled when he snarled, his hot breath blasting into her face.

  Her heart weighed heavy in her chest. With her memories restored, she realized that Ben had been the best thing that had happened in her life. Most of her life, she had been fighting to survive, and she’d had to do it on her own. He was the first person she had ever connected with on any level. It wasn’t until her memories returned, that she’d realized how much his presence in her life made it better.

  And now he’s going to bite my face off.

  She knew she should kill him. She had promised to, but the idea of going back to her lonely life without him in it seemed bleaker than death. She couldn’t muster any anger towards him even if she wanted to. Sadness was the only emotion she had left.

  “Come back to me,” she whispered. “I need you.”

  His red eyes faded to green.

  A sprig of hope blossomed in her chest. “Ben?”

  “Lucy?” He growled. Then his face transformed from bear to human, and his body returned to its usual size.

  “Thank god!” She breathed easy.

  It’s okay. He’s just like me.

  His arms trembled above her, and he flopped on top of her.

  Jesus he weighs a ton.

  “Oww, you’re crushing me.” She gasped.

  He groaned and rolled sideways off her, lying on the floor beside her.

  “Sorry, that was weird and draining.”

  “At least we know we can both control it.” She sat up and beamed at him. Her heart didn’t feel as if it was being pulled through a vice anymore. She wasn’t alone in this.

  He raised himself onto his elbows and turned to face her, his eyes solemn. “I nearly killed you.”

  “But you didn’t. That’s the point. You can control it.”

  “But I would have done if you hadn’t said you needed me.” He frowned and tilted his head. “You need me?”

  “I was scared. It just tumbled out.” Her face burned with embarrassment.

  “It was nice,” he said. “No one ever needed me before. I was just a liability.”

  “You remember who you are?”

  “It’s coming back. I remember who I was,” he said in a dark tone.

  “Really? It took longer for my memories to come back.”

  “Well, you did get hit on the head a fair bit. I wish I didn’t remember.” His voice was dark and cold.

  “Come on, it can’t be that bad.”

  “My parents are dead. I’m a lost cause. You ever been in juvie? I have, a lot.”

  “I’m an orphan too,” she said.

  “Do you think our parents dying is what made us different?” He sat up as if he had an epiphany.

  “It could be.” She shrugged, hiding the real pain she felt over her loss. It hurt still to think about her parent’s death, but it was probably for the best given her current state.

  At least there’s no one I can hurt with this curse.

  “It has to be. That can’t just be a coincidence.”

  She nodded. “It could be connected, and at least we can control this freaky stuff.”

  “I didn’t have that much control.” He stared at her shoulders.

  She glanced down at her left shoulder. There were bloodstains where his claws had dug into her. “It’s nothing. You had claws. Even cats scratch.”

  “Was I a cat?” He widened his eyes.

  “No, you were more like a bear. I wonder what I am? Anyway, on control, this thing seems to be controlled by emotions. We just need to master it.”

  “And get out of here alive.” He frowned. “And survive after that …”

  “What do you mean, after that?”

  “I don’t think being a Berserker is going to be easy once this is over, assuming we get that far.”

  She glanced across the room. “We’re doing better than they did. Anyway, nothing is easy. You know what the worst part is?” She stood up and brushed her hands down her skirt to smooth it out.

  “What?”

  “Now, you’re stuck with me. We’re a pack.” She winked at him.

  He flopped back onto his back and sighed. “Damn, and I thought death was scary.”

  “Hey!” She nudged his side with her foot.

  He grinned in reply and stretched out on the floor before jumping to his feet. “Come on let’s get out of this place. We’ll figure out the rest as we go.”

  “We can’t.” She stood up too.

  He turned to her and frowned. “Why not?”

  “We can’t let any of these creatures out of here. Imagine what would happen if we let them out into the city. Billions of people would die.”

  “Doesn’t the same apply to us?” he asked. “Anyway, for all we know, they’re already out in the city.”

  She sighed. He was right. They had no way of knowing what had happened when they were unconscious. For all she knew, violent creatures had torn the city of Leeds apart and were now spreading across England like a plague.

  She paced the aisle. There had to be an answer. “In the weird book, the notes said that a druid would summon the powers of Odin to create his warriors. What if it is like vampire lore, kill the maker and the creatures all revert to human? That manager was doing some freaky shit in his office. What if we take him out? Maybe we’ll be cured too?”

  “It’s a bit like horror movie lore rather than actual fact.” He grimaced.

  “We’re living myths. What else do we have as a guide?” She fought her logical mind and tried to focus on what she knew.

  “Isn’t killing murder? I mean sure, I know we’re starring in our own personal hell here, but we’re still human, right?”

  “It’s him or us. He threw us in here to be Berserker kibble, he’s killed hundreds of people and it’s not as if we can arrest him. What prison would be able to keep him in when he can shift into anything he wants?”

  “What about the other people? What if there are more like us?”

  “Then we’ll take them outside with us. We’ll just deal with it as it happens. But to get out of here, we need to find the manager. If for no other reason, he must have the keys to the front door.”

  Ben nodded. Okay. Let’s do it.”

  She grinned at him. “What, right now? It’s not the best time.”

  Lucy and Ben charged at the door, bursting through it as the wooden pole between the handles gave way and snapped. They stumbled into the third-floor foyer and glanced around. It was empty.

  “Where now?” he asked.

  “I say we go up. We’ve covered most of downstairs. He might have gone down. It’s fifty-fifty on where he is, but we are more likely to find a way out upstairs. Let’s take our chances that he’ll be up there too.” She pointed to the staircase. “We can keep going up until we find him or a way out.”

  He nodded, and they both headed towards the staircase, hurrying up to the top level of the building. After glancing inside theatr
es ten and eleven to find them empty, they began searching the staff rooms.

  Lucy stepped out of the last room, which had been a supply closet, and motioned to Ben. He stood beside her, and they both faced the doors of the final theater in the building—theatre twelve.

  She was about to push open the doors when Ben stopped her. He tilted his head to the side as if listening. He waved his hand, motioning for her to follow him. She nodded, and he backed around the corner to the last room he had searched.

  She followed him into the room to find a long passage that was adjacent to the theatre. It appeared to be a tunnel of some kind that held all the machinery for the cinema. There were ventilation systems, projectors, lighting controls and computer servers inside it.

  They quietly hurried down the corridor to a door at the end on the right side of the machines. Given the location of the walkway, the door had to lead into theatre twelve.

  He pointed to a door, indicating he was going to open it. She nodded for him to do it. Her senses were on high alert, hunting seemed instinctive to her now.

  He turned the handle, and there was a quiet click as he opened the door and stepped into the theater. She followed and peered around. They were behind the black curtains that surrounded the white screen of the theater.

  She grabbed the back of Ben’s t-shirt and yanked him back towards her when he began walking down the small passage behind the big screen.

  He glanced back at her with a frown on his face.

  She pointed to the screen. There was a shadow moving around on the other side of it. She widened her eyes at him, trying to silently warn him that he would be seen if he stepped out from behind the black curtain.

  He stared at the moving shadow on the other side of the screen, and then gave her a nod.

  Something was inside the room, and it hadn’t detected their presence yet.

  As they hid behind the black curtain, she felt Ben’s hand wrap around hers. It was warm and comforting.

  She flashed him a smile. He smiled back before peeking out through a gap in the thick black material. His fingers tightened around her hand, squeezing it hard. She winced, and her pulse sped up.

  What can he see?

  She plucked an inch of material between the fingers on her free hand and made a small gap in the edge of the curtain to look through. She inhaled sharply at the scene before her.

  At the center of the stage, just a few feet away from them, was a candlelit table. Laid upon the table was a creature. It appeared to be unconscious, although its claws randomly twitched. Blood dripped onto the black floor of the stage as it trickled from the creature’s body. Its chest was sliced open with fur and flesh pulled back by metal clamps, baring its ribcage. Bone had been chipped away, leaving a space around its heart.

  She widened her eyes when she noticed the bloody organ was still beating.

  A man dressed in an apron and dark trousers was walking around the body. He was in his fifties with lank grey hair that flopped over his face. In his hands, he held a large ceremonial scimitar with a bloody blade. Blood and gore covered his white apron. He chanted as he circled the beast, using words that she had never heard before.

  She bit back the urge to scream as the man stopped beside the creature. The air seemed heavy with threat as he stared down at the wolf-like beast.

  He bent over it and buried his face in its bloody chest.

  Bile rose up in her throat as the sounds of gnashing and lapping echoed through the theatre.

  The man stood upright with the creature’s heart hanging from his mouth, chewing on the meaty flesh with relish. The creature’s fingers no longer twitched as the man devoured the remains of its heart.

  She glanced at Ben. He turned to stare at her with fire in his eyes, his intent clear. This man was one they would kill.

  The man roared, and they both peered back through the curtain to see his face change from his own to a million others, transforming from old to young in a blurry mismatch.

  That’s how he shapeshifts into anyone. He eats the heart of a Berserker. He’s the one who pretended to be Ben.

  Fighting the urge to throw up as she realized she’d kissed that mouth, she closed her eyes and forced herself to calm down.

  She gave Ben’s hand a squeeze, and then released it before stepping out from behind the curtain.

  “Well, that was just fucking disgusting to watch,” she said to the man while pressing back against Ben’s chest to ensure he remained hidden behind the curtain as her backup plan. “Colin, I assume?”

  “You again.” He snarled. “You should be dead by now.”

  “What can I say, your monsters aren’t very bright.” She sized him up. He was a big man with enough bulging muscle to kill her, but not as a Berserker.

  He licked his lips. “They have their uses, little girl. Alas, some of you are immune. Still, good fodder for my herd.”

  She walked forward, scanning the stage for weapons. “And here I was thinking you were building an army, not an all-you-can-eat buffet.” She glanced around the room, ensuring there were no other creatures lurking in the dark theater. Her eyes seemed to have attained some kind of night vision because she could clearly see every dark corner.

  “Well, I won’t be eating you,” the manager said, wiping some blood from his cheek with the apron. “It doesn’t mean I won’t kill you though.” He lunged at her with the scimitar.

  She jumped back to avoid being sliced open by his sweeping slash at her. “Is that all you’ve got, old man, a rusty sword?” Anger flared in her belly, and her voice growled with animalistic tones.

  His face blanched as her body changed. She felt ancient power welling up inside her, and her limbs elongated and bulked up with muscle. “Maybe you should face what you’ve created instead.” Her words were guttural.

  She bared her fangs at him as a red haze clouded her vision as if blood had been splashed over her eyes.

  “Such a shame to waste a good heart, but I can still eat you once you’re dead,” he muttered with his head lowered. When he lifted his eyes to her, they glowed red.

  She took a step back while watching his body shifting into something else. She hunched low and launched at him, deciding not to wait for him to grow any larger.

  Thick horns grew out of his head as she flew at him. He hunched his head and knocked her sideways off the stage with the curled horns on his bullish head.

  She crashed into the first row and arched her back in agony. Blood poured from a slice in her side, causing her to roar. She looked up at the stage and saw Ben charge at the bull on all fours and knock into him with a force that shook the stage, his claws ripping into the Minotaur-looking man.

  Colin was far larger than her or Ben. He kicked out with cloven feet, and there was a loud cracking sound when the kick landed on Ben’s arm.

  Ben fell backwards, rolling on the floor in agony.

  She sprang to her feet, ignoring the pain in her side and leaping across the stage onto Colin’s back. She clawed at his eyes while his cloven hooves hammered into the top of her head, trying to dislodge her. She extended her claws and pierced his eyeballs, blinding him.

  A punch knocked into her skull, sending her senses reeling as she fell back off him, slamming into the stage behind him. He turned and raised his foot over her, clearly planning to stamp her to death. She inhaled and rolled sideways. He didn’t notice, and his foot hit the stage.

  He’s blind, she realized as he waved his arms around in front of him.

  She watched Ben push himself off the ground behind Colin, using his once broken arm.

  He won’t be blind for long if we heal that fast.

  She hunched low and stalked to his side, indicating for Ben to attack from the other side. Colin was stronger, but he was injured. They could take him down together.

  Ben’s massive bear head nodded back at her, and he too hunched low before stalking to the left side of the giant creature. Together they leapt at him, knocking him onto his back and pinni
ng down his arms with their bodies. Ben clawed at his chest, while she tore into his throat with her enlarged fangs, ripping away at the beast beneath her.

  His arm tensed under her, lifting and flinging her off him. She yelped and crashed into the wall beside the stage, feeling her bones snap and the wall crack upon impact. She slid down the broken concrete in agony, pain blossoming all over her body. She couldn’t move. She couldn’t feel her legs. They were useless lumps attached to her torso.

  Oh god! Is my spine broken.

  Her head flopped to the side as she watched Ben rip the creature apart, tearing him limb from limb. Colin was most certainly dead because his body shifted back into human form, what was left of it.

  Ben stood up and roared. Then he turned to face her with red glowing eyes. He stalked towards her, and she let out a small whimper. Feeling began to tingle into her toes.

  At least I’m healing.

  She stared up at Ben, unsure of what would happen next.

  His eyes faded to green, and his bear form faded to human. He knelt beside her with concern in his eyes.

  “Are you okay? Can you move?”

  She tried to reply, but her mouth was still a snout, and the words seemed awkward to form.

  Why am I still a monster?

  He reached out to touch her, and she snapped at his hand.

  He pulled it away, watching her with concern. “Change back.”

  She tried, but her body was busy mending her broken bones and refused to listen.

  I can’t.

  She whimpered, but it came out a growl.

  “Give it a moment.” He studied her arm as it snapped back into place, and she let out a howl of pain.

  She whimpered as her back straightened, closing her eyes as nerves knitted together and sensations returned to her legs.

  Her body shrank as it shifted back to human form, and she sighed with relief.

  Ben reached for her again. “Don’t bite me, okay? I’m going to pick you up.”

  “Okay.”

  He slipped his arm under hers and around her back while his other arm curled under her knees, and he lifted her off the ground. She winced in pain, but felt relief as she curled her arms around his neck. She could move them again, albeit painfully.